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To describe The WhiskeyBelles, a Milwaukee-based country / Americana band that played at Summerfest tonight, as having good energy seems too obvious, and yet, I cannot think of two words that better describe this trio of ladies who term their sound and vision as having "Hank Williams passion, Carter Family harmonies and a little Hee Haw mixed in for good measure."

The women stormed the U.S. Cellular Connection Stage just a minute after 8 p.m. tonight, armored in summer dresses and cowgirl boots and strapped with stringed instruments: Chrissy Dzioba on guitar, Kimmy Unger on the fiddle and Sara Moilanen with her bass. All three of the women provide vocals and have powerful, feminine voices able to hold their own, back up another singer or kill it on a harmony.

Although they make their musical stage party look effortless, the three musicians have an impressive background. Dzioba began playing piano at the age of three and was able to read music before she could read words. Unger started playing violin at the age of 10 and has been a member of the Racine Symphony Orchestra since 1999 and Moilanen has also been a musician since childhood and the recipient of multiple WAMI awards.

It’s tempting to call The WhiskeyBelles "Milwaukee’s Dixie Chicks" – and they did cover one of their songs tonight, "Tortured Tangled Hearts," but despite the obvious similarities, they have a style and sound very much their own. Most unique is the band’s sense of humor which resonated throughout the set. They intentionally dramatically said "Whiskey Women" every time they referenced their album of that name and big-smiled through dark songs like "The Other Woman," a tune about cheating women and "Pills I Took," which features the lyrics – which they also beamed through – "Well, I've been awake for eight straight days / well must've been the pills I took / I been twitchin' and turnin', seeing visions / must’ve been the pills I took."

Dzioba also made a joke when introducing their song, "Genuine," that she is bilingual in western and country and in "country," "genuine" is pronounced "gen-you-wine."

The WhiskeyBelles also served up originals "Borrowed Trouble," "Devil Boots," "California," "Whiskey Woman," along with some cuts from their new album due out this winter. They played a song by local punk band Fox Face as well as covers of Dolly Parton's "Jolene," "Ex's & Oh's" by Elle King and a stunning version of "All Along The Watchtower." It was surprisingly moving to hear women, I think for my first time, tribute this song made famous and more famous by Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton and Dave Matthews. And yet, the lyrics seem particularly poignant when sang by females, "There must be some way out of here…"

The sound was problematic at times, with some songs featuring more decipherable vocal than others, and at one point Unger’s fiddle went silent, but what carries The Whiskeybelles through it all is their camaraderie with one another. The cheer between the three women on stage is as notable as their musicianship, especially during the last minute or so of the set when they danced, jammed, twirled and, of course, smiled.

After the show, I realized the sound check was foreshadowing for the concert when they warmed up with "Keep On The Sunny Side." For about an hour tonight, those of us at the U.S. Cellular Connection Stage were definitely there.